With all the shows about doctors, lawyers, and cops, Baywatch, the iconic show depicting the everyday adventures of a group of lifeguards was a true refreshment back in the day.
Among all the characters we all loved so much was the beautiful blonde lifeguard Shauni McClain played by actress Erika Eleniak. When she appeared on the show, she took everyone’s breath away thus producers decided to upgrade her role and her character was taken under the wing of Jill Riley, played by Shawn Weatherley.
However, once the show took a bit of a different direction and Pamela Anderson became part of the cats, Erika believed she should take a break and eventually leave it.
Speaking of Baywatch, Erika said in a recent interview: “I loved being there, and I loved the role, especially the second season. I got some great storylines. I really got to dig my chops into some good acting roles. We did Baywatch to be a serious look at lifeguarding.”
Over time, she somehow started feeling uncomfortable being part of the show and said, “For me, as soon as it became even sexier, when it became syndicated, it was definitely not comfortable. It ended up being a bit of a push and pull between myself and the producer sometimes. So when Pamela came on, it was just the perfect fit for Baywatch – she was definitely footloose and fancy-free and loved being more of an exhibitionist than I did.”
Erika was part of other series and films as well, including E.T. the Extra Terrestrial, where she starred at the age of just 12, the horror film The Blob, the 1993 film adaption of The Beverly Hillbillies, and more.
Today, the beautiful actress is out of the spotlight and doesn’t appear on screen, but she’s active running her podcast The Spiritual Alchemy Podcast. She’s also very active on Instagram where she posts photos of her and her family.
This year, Erika, who is happily married to key grip Roch Daigle with whom she has a daughter, is 52 years old. Honestly, based on her looks, we would never guess it. She defies age and looks absolutely stunning.